Supreme Court of Canada Grants Leave to Appeal in Peel Watershed Case

The Supreme Court of Canada has granted leave to appeal in First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun et al. v. Government of Yukon. In the decision under appeal, the Yukon Court of Appeal quashed the land use plan for the Peel Watershed that Yukon unilaterally imposed in place of the plan developed with First Nations through a collaborative land use planning commission. The Court of Appeal ordered the parties back to an earlier stage of the commission planning process at which Yukon had provided flawed comments on the commission’s Recommended Plan. The Yukon First Nations’ appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada focuses on whether this was the appropriate remedy.

The Gwich’in Tribal Council was denied leave to intervene in the application for leave to appeal, but may apply for leave to intervene in the appeal.

For a summary of the Yukon Court of Appeal decision that is under appeal, see our blog post here: here